I have a EVGA 9300 motherboard in my HTPC that has worked good since I built it. I'm getting the itch to upgrade but don't want to spend money for nothing. I have not been following the latest hardware and GPU's that are out now. Just wondering if I will gain anything by adding a separate GPU to my current set-up. Here is what I am using now.

So can anyone resomend a good fanless graphics card? No gaming needed. How about a ssd too?

ATI 5450, it's the cheapest card ($25?) that can do all the advanced features that the more expensive cards can do such as vector adaptive deinterlacing.

For SSD I use a Crucial 64GB M4 that I got for ~$80 6 months ago.

After adding these 2 to my 5 year old HP Slimline and bumping ram from 2GB to 4GB I don't see any reason to buy a new computer until this one breaks. I couldn't do anything more for htpc use with a newer processor that I can't already do now.

I rip BD to MKV and store on server and bitstream to my receiver via the 5450.

Everything plays fine but my Bluray movies do stall if i pause them for longer than 4 min but i think thats a PDVD 9/11 issue. In any case I would like to do 3D bluray eventually when i upgrade tv and get a hdmi 1.4 receiver.

My initial thoughts was to just swap out the 5450 for a 6850 and call it a day. But then i thought i should swap the cpu/mobo/ram and use those parts and upgrade to a WHS2011 setup from my current Pentium 4 1gb WHS v1 setup. I would get an Ivy Bridge i5 for the htpc.

Am i over thinking this and wasting the cash?
My other option is to keep everything as is and get a 3d bluray player, but it would suck to do that for the 3 or 4 movies i may buy in the next 2 years.

I rip BD to MKV and store on server and bitstream to my receiver via the 5450.

Everything plays fine but my Bluray movies do stall if i pause them for longer than 4 min but i think thats a PDVD 9/11 issue. In any case I would like to do 3D bluray eventually when i upgrade tv and get a hdmi 1.4 receiver.

My initial thoughts was to just swap out the 5450 for a 6850 and call it a day. But then i thought i should swap the cpu/mobo/ram and use those parts and upgrade to a WHS2011 setup from my current Pentium 4 1gb WHS v1 setup. I would get an Ivy Bridge i5 for the htpc.

Am i over thinking this and wasting the cash?
My other option is to keep everything as is and get a 3d bluray player, but it would suck to do that for the 3 or 4 movies i may buy in the next 2 years.

Here is some info:

First- I have learned that "if" you have to rebuild and upgrade is very different than "if you want to" rebuild and upgrade.

If you want to do it- then it does not matter if you have to do it or not.

That said- you don't have to do it. But you might like it if you did, and obviously there will be performance benefits. The decision is yours if you feel you should or do it.

That said, here is some thoughts.

You could take your existing board CPU and DDR2 800mhz and make a storage server or use it for something else. It's still working and capable- you don't have to throw it away.

Also,

I am not sure you need an i5 2500k. That thing is a monster!

I have build 5 PC's in last 90 days. a G620, a G630, an i3 2100, an i5 2500k and an i7 2600k. I am typing this on the i7.

So I feel qualified to give you some opinion on the differences.

The G630 is probably more than you need for normal PC duties and HTPC provided you give it 8GB of good DDR3 and a fast SSD for the OS. It really is quite amazing and I can't see anyone complaining about it, or seeing something it won't handle easy. $61.99 get you this CPU. I like it so much I have a spare sitting in front of me in box waiting for a purpose.

The i3 2100 is a beast. It should provide a nice bump in performance if you think you need it. You can get this for $110. Or get the 2120 or whatever LGA1155 i3 you find a good deal on. I think people really don't understand how much a beast this little CPU is.

The i5 is a total monster. I doubt you need this. Honestly it's too much and more than enough for just about anything I can think of. Seriously- you get tons of performance and bang for the buck. Don't let the i5 moniker fool you- this thing is premium high end overkill all the way- through and thru.

The i7 really is too much. It's clearly too much for anything HTPC related. I might actually say it's overkill even for a hardcore gaming machine. It's more than you need for a high end gaming rig. Yes... so much so that it will provide little to no benefit over the i5 since the CPU is so good it's not the limiting factor anymore. I have dual 6870x2's for video cards. I would need Radeon 7000's or higher to use what my board, ram and CPU can do.

Don't think you need an i5 2500k because all the reviews are so wonderful. You probably would get away easily with a G630 and certainly with an i3. Compared to your PC now- it's not a contest the difference.

Now- I am typing this from an overclocked i7 machine and I have my turbo boost set to run @4.5ghz x all cores. I run 16GB DDR3 @1866mhz, and I have a Vertex3 MAX IOPS as my OS drive.

Take my advice from a performance junkie- these CPU's are way underrated and provide excellent value given the prices.

You should be able to get a nice Z68 board, 8GB DDR3 1600mhz, and an i3 for $225. You can upgrade to an i5 for $310.

The upgrade and performance bump would be very extreme.

My strongest advice would be- don't for a second do anything or spend a dime upgrading unless you plan to get an SSD for your OS. This is required.

Nothing you can do will give you a better experience or faster real world speed than an SSD for your OS.

I would easily take your current PC with a fast SSD for the OS over an i5 based rig on a normal HDD for the OS.

Hope that helps.

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"Too much is almost enough. Anything in life worth doing is worth overdoing. Moderation is for cowards."

I thought my system was ok, its been running strong since 2009. I also thought the i5 would be overkill but i thought i needed quad-core since i want to do 3D. I think i need to at least get the 6850 to do it is that true or will PDVD just utilize more cpu?

I heard good and bad about an SSD. That was my initial plan until i read stuff about maintaining it is a chore and i'll have to put programs on another hdd. I dont want to do all that, i want to set it and forget it.

Now my new questions are:
1. Do I have to buy a ATI 6850 to do 3D bluray or can my current setup do it?
2. If i dont upgrade, is the SSD a set it and forget item, also how long do they last as opposed to a standard hdd?
3. If i go with an SSD, can i install my current win 7 image onto it or do i have to do a complete reinstall?

I thought my system was ok, its been running strong since 2009. I also thought the i5 would be overkill but i thought i needed quad-core since i want to do 3D. I think i need to at least get the 6850 to do it is that true or will PDVD just utilize more cpu?
Now my new questions are:
1. Do I have to buy a ATI 6850 to do 3D bluray or can my current setup do it?

Depends on what your really trying to do. If you game, or want a 6850 anyways that is different than if you could get away without one, or with a cheaper alternative. Two different questions. You can get a 6850 Radeon for about $149 like an XFX HD-685X-ZCFC Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

I heard good and bad about an SSD. That was my initial plan until i read stuff about maintaining it is a chore and i'll have to put programs on another hdd. I dont want to do all that, i want to set it and forget it.

Get an SSD.
I will repeat.. GET AN SSD!

Break your legs running so fast to go get one. Never look back. You will thank me.
All that crap about maintaining, or putting other programs on a different drive is BS. Ignore it.
Just install it by plugging into your Sata port on your Mobo, set your Bios to ACHI mode, install windows.. then install your other programs. Done. Very simple. Nothing special you need to do. Same as a HDD but way faster/better.
You can set it and forget it. No worries.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cigga24

2. If i dont upgrade, is the SSD a set it and forget item, also how long do they last as opposed to a standard hdd?

Yes. SSD is set it and forget it. You can upgrade your system now and make a big improvement in speed with it. Just set Bios Sata Port to ACHI mode and install to the SSD like any normal HDD. Nothing further special you must do.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cigga24

3. If i go with an SSD, can i install my current win 7 image onto it or do i have to do a complete reinstall?

You could. But it’s not worth it. SSD’s install quick. Much quicker than HDD’s. Half the fun is watching how much faster windows installs to it
A fresh install will perform better and faster- and provide you a nice clean registry. It’s always the best option when possible and worth a little extra effort. I find that moving an existing partition or OS is often harder than it first appears and I should have just installed clean from the start and saved time while gaining performance.
But you can do both so it is up to you.

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"Too much is almost enough. Anything in life worth doing is worth overdoing. Moderation is for cowards."

Ok you sold me on the SSD. Now lets talk size. I looked at my current W7 install with apps is 46gb, will a 60gb ssd give me enough headroom or do i not need to worry about that. I'm thinking of going OCZ 120gb for $99 or Crucial 64gb for $80. The crucial has superb reviews, the only reason why i considered the lesser of a deal.

I think 128 is the new sweet spot. You can buy perfectly fine 120/128gb SSDs for $99-120. They are faster than the smaller ones, and you simply don't have to worry about filling them up.

I see a posts where people are adding up their stuff and basically saying "well my OS and programs add up to only 55gb so I'll be fine with a 60" but Windows really doesn't like to be squeezed and you're asking for trouble, plus somewhere along the line you'll run into something that will only install on your system drive and end up hassling with moving stuff around. Not worth it.

I've only been buying 128s recently and that's what I'd recommend for the very modest price increase. They're basically the same price that 64s were at the start of the year.

I think 128 is the new sweet spot. You can buy perfectly fine 120/128gb SSDs for $99-120. They are faster than the smaller ones, and you simply don't have to worry about filling them up.

I see a posts where people are adding up their stuff and basically saying "well my OS and programs add up to only 55gb so I'll be fine with a 60" but Windows really doesn't like to be squeezed and you're asking for trouble, plus somewhere along the line you'll run into something that will only install on your system drive and end up hassling with moving stuff around. Not worth it.

I've only been buying 128s recently and that's what I'd recommend for the very modest price increase. They're basically the same price that 64s were at the start of the year.

Agreed.

I am going 120GB from now on. I have 6 different 60/64GB variants and they do fill up too fast with odd clutter.

You can always delete and trim it back down easy enough.. but I would rather just have the headroom so it's not a problem.

I enjoy downloading to the SSD, cause installations from it go so speedy

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"Too much is almost enough. Anything in life worth doing is worth overdoing. Moderation is for cowards."

Ok what about brand preference. OCZ, Crucial, Corsair? Frys has a special on Crucial, Microcenter on OCZ and Corsair is $30 more than the sale on the others.
I see these two at my price point which is $100 after rebate: http://www.microcenter.com/search/co...4f042dd4b7a2e6

Ok what about brand preference. OCZ, Crucial, Corsair? Frys has a special on Crucial, Microcenter on OCZ and Corsair is $30 more than the sale on the others.

As a general rule, I don't think brand matters at all. What matters is controller brand/model, NAND type, and size.

Basically, drives with of the same size, with the same controller, and same NAND type, will perform essentially the same and likely have the same reliability. Then buy on price.

The exception is probably Intel which controls its own firmware for the standard controllers it uses. You probably get better reliability, but you pay more for it. And Intel and Plextor give 5 year warranties rather than the standard 3.

Samsung makes its own unique controllers and its own memory chips.

I like Plextor and Samsung, but have used Mushkin and Sandisk without a problem as well. (Personally I've chosen to avoid SF2281 controller based models though).

Ok what about brand preference. OCZ, Crucial, Corsair? Frys has a special on Crucial, Microcenter on OCZ and Corsair is $30 more than the sale on the others.
I see these two at my price point which is $100 after rebate: http://www.microcenter.com/search/co...4f042dd4b7a2e6

The $179 Vertex3 120GB is now available for $99 (Not $179 like the review thinks) This was the top for 120GB size class. Samsung won the 60GB class, but I would argue that either brand/model are good choices at both the 60/120GB sizes depending on prices you find. I own both the Samsung and many of the Vertex3's. Both are equally excellent.